


Ride Home, The

by HASA_Archivist



Category: The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Post-War of the Ring, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-19
Updated: 2015-04-19
Packaged: 2018-03-24 17:23:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3777054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HASA_Archivist/pseuds/HASA_Archivist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Faramir takes his wife to be for a ride.  A short PWPish piece of smuff (smut n' fluff) inspired by the sheer suggestiveness of horseback riding.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ride Home, The

**Author's Note:**

> Note from the HASA Transition Team: This story was originally archived at [HASA](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Henneth_Ann%C3%BBn_Story_Archive), which closed in February 2015. To preserve the archive, we began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in February 2015. We posted announcements about the move, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this author, please contact The HASA Transition Team using the e-mail address on the [HASA collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/hasa/profile).

**For Maggie van S.**

\---------------------------  


I opened one eye and a very un-ladylike groan escaped my lips. Someone was softly knocking on my door, and I smiled, for only one person I knew would have knocked that gently.

-"My lady?"

-"Aye, just a moment."- I had to convince half of Minas Tirith, from the Lord Steward to the Warden of the Houses, that I truly did not need handmaidens, and right now I regretted my decision. They could have answered the door, could have led him in, thus giving me the time to prepare myself for my future lord. As it was, he would be forced to behold me just out of bed, and I made a wide detour around the room so as not to look in the silver Dol Amroth mirror placed upon the dark, heavy chair. I knew I was famed for my long, golden hair, but whoever thought it beautiful surely never saw it first thing in the morning.

I opened the door hesitantly. Since we were to be married, I knew he would often see me in much worse states than now, with my hair tousled beyond recognition and a first best cloak draped around my arms to cover my nightgown from his eyes; and yet I felt unbearably self-conscious. He thought me fair and has told me that many times, in this shyly quiet tone of his, but I had eyes of my own. And I have seen the ladies of Gondor who had returned from their exile after the Enemy had fallen. I could hear their mocking comments about the wild shieldmaiden, and I could see their ironic glances thrown at me, as well as the wanton ones thrown at the Steward. I wanted to stand up from my place by his side, stand up and scream at them, 'where have you been when the forces of evil ravaged your country? I have fought while you have fled!' Though deep down in my heart I knew I was unjust towards them, I felt I have somehow earned myself the right to him and his love.

-"My lord."- my gaze slid up from his soft Ranger boots, the very same he came in from Ithilien, along the very same breeches he wore when I first met him, a thoroughly ordinary white linen shirt and then to his grey eyes, glinting with gentle amusement. I knew I had missed the mouth. Valar, I could not look upon his mouth. The only adornment he chose to wear was the ring symbolising his office, and apart from that he looked every bit a Ranger Captain and not in the least a Steward, much less a Prince. But still, his posture and his clear eyes conveyed so pure an air of nobility that even the coarse clothes he preferred seemed custom-tailored and woven out of finest silk, and I cursed myself again for having so vehemently refused the aid of handmaidens. I did not look fit for him. I probably never would.

 

 

My breath caught in my throat and I was not sure if I could resume breathing when she opened the door. Her hair flowed down in a stream of pale, melted gold past her shoulders, shining brighter than I have ever seen the sun shine. The trace of the pillow she had slept upon marked her left cheek and I had to fight against my fingers which desperately ached to reach up and smooth back her skin. She bore the most enticing blush which brought out the few freckles that graced her little nose, but she soon raised her head and looked me in the eye. As always, her strong and proud stare took me aback, and her pale blue eyes seemed to bore right into me. I knew not which words to say, how to tell her how much just being able to see her meant to me, and I did the first thing that sprang to my mind. I took her white hand and raised it to my mouth, brushing her soft skin the warmth of which belied its colour with my lips.

-"My lady."- I knew she could not invite me in, as we were alone and not yet married, so I kept one exact step in front of the threshold.- "I have come to ask you whether you would not wish to take a ride with me this morrow."

-"A ride?"- she was obviously surprised, but I did not detect any sign that my invitation displeased her, so I hurried to explain.

-"You have not yet seen Ithilien, my lady. Our home."- I was very anxious to take her to the place I loved like no other, the place we would live in, and I hoped with all my soul's might that there she would see the beauty I saw, and hold it dear as I did.

-"Our home."- she repeated slowly, then smiled at me.- "I would be very glad to accompany you to the Moon-land, my lord. I need just a while."- she gestured to the cloak she wore about her arms, and I realised she was undressed. I could have sworn I actually blushed. Not something that happens too often to me.

-"There is no hurry, my lady. I will be waiting for you at the stables, but please, take your time."- I bowed to her, departing, and she nodded to me in return.

 

 

'Our home' he had said, and it rang in my ears as I took to preparing myself for the promised ride. 'Our home', and the mouth of his that drove me close to insane in my dreams curved up in a slightly unsure yet dazzlingly joyful smile. I was thrilled at the prospect of seeing the Moon- land, my heart sang at the thought of spending some time in his company, since he had been very busy throughout the past weeks, but I had to admit to myself that what delighted me at least as much was the chance to mount a horse, for the first time since I rode out of Edoras with the Riders of the Mark. I poured some water into the copper basin, the coldness of the liquid washing the sleep off my face, then combed my hair and bound it into a tight braid. I knew I could not ride slow, no matter what my future husband would say, I longed for the blood rush of a mighty steed beneath my saddle and the wind singing in my ears. I chose a green dress, knowing that this one would suffer the smallest damage should I fall off, and finding it amusing to dress so alike my lord's men did. Pity I did not have a hood. Casting one last glance into the mirror, I scolded myself for my vanity. Unjustified vanity, to be honest, for my face was pale and sickly thin, my breasts small, my frame willowy, and my eyes set deep in shadows of weariness. The depth of the dress's colour made my skin look even more white, and my hair was bound tight and harsh. I shrugged to my reflection. I could not change how I looked.

 

 

I had prepared everything, but I could not keep myself from repeating the list in my mind, running over and over it whether I truly did pack all we needed. There was some cold chicken, bread, cheese and wine in my saddlebags, as well as a blanket we could sit upon. I had retrieved my bow and quiver, which I didn't have the chance to use since the retreat across Pelennor, but the years I had spent there taught me that no weapon was as useful in Ithilien as a longbow.

-"My lord."- I whirled around to behold my lady coming down the stairs, beautiful as dawn shining upon the waves of the Anduin. Her slender body was hugged by a soft, dark material which clung to her curves and made them visible as she walked. I believe I must have gulped rather audibly. I offered her my hand to hold as she reached the final steps, and she smiled at me, taking my palm and bringing it up to her face.

-"I wanted to thank you, my lord, for sparing your precious time for my sake."- she rubbed her cheek against my palm and wrinkled her nose.- "Won't the King object to my taking the attention of his Steward?"- the question was half a jest, and I grinned.

-"The King will not object, my lady, for he does not know I am taking you for a ride. He believes I am sleeping off the council that lasted deep into the night. I don't think he, or anyone else here for that matter, would appreciate our riding out without a chaperon."- I half expected her to back away from me at so indecent a proposal. This is what any other lady would have done, but I saw I was not mistaken in the judgement of my wife to be as her eyes lit up with joy.

-"Are we riding alone?"- she asked and I nodded.- "Wonderful!"- she exclaimed and squeezed my hand, which she had not released. Her smile brought the sun and moon down from the sky and into the stables of Minas Tirith.- "We will be able to talk."- she stated, more seriously, as I led her to the horses I had chosen for us. No-one attended to us since I wished our ride to be a secret, and thus I had prepared the saddles myself. Once again, my heart hesitated as I wondered whether I had not been wrong about my lady.

-"I have chosen a uniform saddle for you, my lady. I thought you would not appreciate riding in a female one."- she clasped her hands in delight, laughing quietly.

-"How well you know me, my lord."- she smiled. 'Not as well as I would wish to, my love.'

 

 

I am a Rohirrim. My people are the Riders; we are the horse-people. Last time I had ridden in a female saddle, I had been seven, and I had expressed my displeasement at so unuseful a thing so vividly that even my brother allowed me to ride a normal saddle as long as I wore harsh stockings to cover my calves. My lord surprised me with his consideration, but I also warmed to him, seeing his longing to please me overthrow all the customs he's been taught all his life. We mounted and rode down from the sixth circle, my face and hair covered by the hooded cloak he had supplied so that no-one would recognise me. We rode out the remains of the gate unchallenged, the guards bowing respectfully to the Steward and his companion.

The Pelennor fields drowned in the blazing light of a midday sun and I closed my eyes in delight. The land had been ravaged, the signs of the trenches and ravines dug by the enemy still visible in the soft soil, but it seemed that the gentle reign of King Elessar, the undying love of his Queen Undomiel and the wise council of my lord the Steward graced the whole country, and those three made the hearts of their people blossom along with the greened land.

We rode fast and he did not object, spurring his horse to stay by my side no matter how wild a gallop I chose, and I saw him smile at the corner of my eye as I whooped with joy. He bade me slow down as we reached the ruins of Osgiliath and I obeyed, pulling the hood which had fallen to my shoulders over my head, and once again we were saluted by soldiers guarding the newly rebuilt bridge as we crossed the Anduin and rode into Ithilien.

'The garden of Gondor', someone once called it, but truly, no words could do justice to the beauty of the Moon-land. My lord's eyes shone as he looked upon the land he had loved so, and I understood I had found another piece to fill in the riddle he was to me. Here he was at home, this place had been his princedom many years before the coming of the King, and though it seemed strange to me at first that one so enamoured with books would choose a wilderness as his home, right now I understood that the beauty of this land soothed his troubled soul.

-"My lady."- he smiled at me and I wriggled in my saddle, hot and bothered in my heavy cloak beneath his warm smile and clear gaze.- "While I was in command here, my brother rarely spared time to visit me."- a small cloud shadowed his eyes for a moment but swiftly passed.- "But when he did, I would meet him on the eastern shore of the river and we would chase north in the direction of Henneth Annun, usually 'til where the water delves slightly deeper into the land, three miles from hither."

 

 

This was a challenge and I knew she understood it so as her eyes sparkled beneath the hood. I knew not what had made me say it, except maybe that I wished to hear and see her as joyful as when we rode across the Pelennor. I saw how the pampering of the court distressed her, how she hid into herself from the attentions of ladies and lords, and I had managed only once before to bring her out of the shell she chose to retreat into. When I heard she had said she felt not well, I asked my King for leave, and instead of listening to the gathered courtpeople discuss my lady's condition at the table, I collected some food and beer from the kitchen, gathered the Masters Peregrin and Meriadoc on my way and invited myself upon her in her chambers. She seemed glad enough to see me, and the constant bickering of the halflings amused her greatly, and this was the most joyful time we had ever spent together. I had assumed she would prefer beer over wine and I was not wrong, for her face shone with delight when I had poured her some. We spent some time discussing the superiority of the Rohirric draughts over the Gondor ones, yet had to admit wholeheartedly that the best beer was to be found in the Shire even though we never tried it. If you think us to have shown cowardice, you have obviously never been under attack from two valiant, if small, creatures ready to defend one of the things they loved most. We have endured our share of shame that evening, too, for the ale seemed to have unbound the halflings' tongues, and I was first treated to a couple of anecdotes concerning my lady's ride with the Rohirrim from Master Meriadoc, upon which Master Peregrin retorted with some less than graceful tales from my recovery in the Houses of Healing. We had blushed and we had laughed, and as I turned to leave, carrying a sleeping Periain on my each arm, my lady put her slender hand on my elbow and placed a hesitant kiss upon my cheek.

-"Thank you, my lord."- she had whispered before softly closing the door, and I'm afraid I have stood there for quite some time, my eyes fixed upon the place where she had been.

 

 

I have often chased with the Riders and I was never beaten. Even my brother could not ride as fast as I did, but the one thing I did not count upon was that my lord was much more slender than the Riders of the Mark, and he wore naught but the lightest clothing, and where he still weighed much more than me, I did not have so overruling a superiority over him as I have always had over those I chased until now. The Riders with their breastplates rode with their backs stiff, and he in his thin shirt nearly laid upon his horses' neck as we thundered past the woods and the river, in a mad, dizzying chase, his face lightened by a smile and mine, that I was sure of, contorted in concentration. I was not going to let myself be beaten by a Gondorrim.

I was very grateful to him for the offer of the ride. For a moment maybe, and without consequences, but this would take from my soul the veil of fear I felt whenever around him. Not that he gave me any reasons to fear him; but he was to me what none other has been before. Men with swords I knew how to face and fight, but him I was supposed to neither fight nor flatter, and this was what scared me. He was the one man in my life that would be like no other; my love, my lord, my husband, the father of the children I would bear, and it was this exceptionality of what he meant to me that scared me, too. And then he came, gentle and reserved as always, and offered me a ride, thus putting us and our relations in a situation and setting I knew how to handle, and for that concern and understanding my heart filled with gratitude.

I was sure I have never ridden so. He was a splendid rider and his horse a marvellous steed, and I soon found it hard to keep up with him. He took the challenge seriously, treated me and my abilities as he probably had his brother's when they had chased the same route, and as much as I felt appreciated, anger flared in me, because I was losing. I rode one of the grey Rohan stallions while he rode a black mare, and the mane of the horse was indiscernible from his own shining black hair as he laid his cheek against the horses' neck. I jammed my heels into the stallion's sides, determined to win, and felt strands of my own hair slip loose from the braid as we gained speed, the hooves of our mounts ploughing the grass, and I felt my breath being pushed to the back of my throat and my heart pounding wildly, and I gained on him, but he just shook his head against the wind with a wry smile and spurred his horse so that he was even with me, and I frowned, my face by now a mask of determination, and I heard him laugh, so I shouted a Rohirric curse that would have made him change his mind about marrying me if he knew the tongue of my people, and we rode faster than lightning. But he had won. The lean Gondorian beat the best among the Rohirrim, and he flashed me a cocky grin as he slipped off his saddle.

 

 

I had laughed because of the whirling pressure the velocity had caused in my stomach, and then I grinned as I won, but when I saw my lady dismount and all but charge upon me, I thought I had made a mistake. Surely she did not want me to ride lamely just to let her win? She stood before me, her eyes burning with anger, and for a moment I thought she would strike me. But she did not. Instead, she released the reins she had been holding, threw her arms around my neck and brought my head hard down against hers, her mouth searching for mine.

 

 

I was aflame. The muscles of the grey stallion that had played between my thighs, the roaring of the wind and the blood-boiling challenge of the chase kindled a fire in me, and for once my skin was not deadly white. I could barely catch my breath. I was not angry with him, but the fire in me needed a vent, and as I went up to him in what my brother kindly described as a 'Haradrim march', I wanted to shout at him, maybe even hit him. But then I took a look at his wildly tousled hair, the shining grey eyes, the flushed face and the mouth that still bore a distant sign of the cocky grin but was now being bitten due to his uncertainty, and I knew I had lost it.

 

 

She pressed against me, her heart beating frantically against my chest, her arms around me, and she kissed me like a passionate lover would, her delicate pale lips open and inviting beneath mine, and I kissed her back, not quite sure what was happening and why. I felt her beautiful, round breasts being pushed against me as she took deep breaths, and I encircled her slim waist, pulling her closer. It was her who deepened the kiss, plunging her small, sweet tongue into my mouth, and I responded to that with a swiftly rising hunger. We had touched before, of course, with an easy familiarity of the betrothed, but save for the one time when she pressed her lips to my cheek, we had never shared any touch that we would perceive as intimate. Or at least none that she could perceive as such, for my skin burned and my vision blurred whenever she allowed me to kiss her hand, and as much as I despised myself for that, each time I touched her skin, my mind raced and flooded me with most inappropriate imagery. Right now these images were coming to life, for she stood on tiptoe, kissing me madly, and ground her hips against mine.

 

 

He pulled back from me, an ungraceful, abrupt move as he took a couple of steps back and closed his eyes, regaining his breath. I knew not what had come over me, except that I was driven crazy by the chase and by his proximity, and I realised with horror that I wanted him. I wanted to feel and touch and kiss him, to have him as close to me as possible, and these were not a lady's thoughts. Surely he felt offended by my having all but thrown myself upon him, and I scolded myself, expecting him to show revulsion at such ill manners. But he spoke gently and quietly, placing a cool hand upon his burning face to calm himself.

-"My lady."- he was still out of breath, and the words came a croaking whisper.- "You... I... I cannot control myself too well, I'm afraid."- he smiled apologetically and my heart melted as I understood he took all the blame for what had happened upon himself. I crossed to where he stood, praying silently that he would not back further from me, and I rested one palm upon his shoulder.

-"My lord."- my voice was hoarsely whispering, too.- "I am sorry for having put you in so displeasing a situation."

-"Displeasing?"- he tilted his head and smiled at me.- "I would call this all but displeasing, my lady. In fact, it is the pleasure I found in that situation that I fear. I might..."- he shook his head, and a slight blush rose on his face.- "I might not be able to control my actions, should this *situation* last longer."

I thought about his words for one heartbeat. I was not as innocent as not to understand what he meant; after all, I was brought up in an exclusively male household, with a not especially discreet ladies' man for a brother. I knew that women could affect men so that they lost their self-control and I must admit I found this power we had over them most enthralling, even if I never had a chance to exert it myself. But women who felt such mind- deafening wanting for a man were certainly only whores, and I felt ashamed for the heat that refused to leave my body as I stood so close to him.

-"I am sorry, my lord."- I repeated, lowering my head so that he would not behold me in such shame. I was greatly surprised when I felt a long, cold finger trace my cheek.

-"Do not be, my lady. I should thank you, I think."- I looked up on him to see that his eyes were laughing at me, not because of what I had done but because of the fact he actually liked it. He did.

 

 

I do believe that I knew what had caused her discomfort. Men were allowed to play the active part in their relations with women; but that was denied to the fair gender. She had astounded me, but where I am certain many men would have preferred their ladies to be passive and obedient, I loved mine for the fire I saw in her. She locked her blue gaze with mine and though I had hoped to get my treacherous body under control when I broke the kiss, the memory of her mouth upon mine and the golden sunrays of her hair that crossed her eyes added to the throbbing strain that had welled up in my breeches as we kissed. I could only pray that I backed soon enough for her not to notice it. A lord's behaviour indeed, to slander a lady by getting aroused in her presence. I wished neither to scare nor offend her, for we were still only betrothed and I was supposed to keep my hands off her, for the sake of every custom on Middle-earth as well as her honour. But this seemed to be a task beyond my abilities as she lowered her head and I saw that she was shamed by her actions. My hand wandered up to her cheek against my will, and a tingling jolt of pleasure shot from my fingertips through my whole body as I touched her perfect, lovely skin, and I felt she was as hot as I. The smouldering flame in her gaze took my breath away as she finally looked up at me.

-"Are you not wroth with me?"- she asked tentatively and I just had to smirk. 'Wroth I am with my own body, but not with you, my love.' But out loud I said:

-"Not in the least, my lady."

-"Would you then consider..."- she trailed off and blushed against my palm still cradling her wondrous face.

-"Consider what, my lady?"

-"Kissing me again."- her voice was so quiet I barely heard it, but then she licked her lips and my world ceased moving. The rosy tip of her tongue I so badly wanted to feel in my mouth, the pale lips pressed against mine, the slender arms once again around my neck, I wanted to lose myself in the sweet scent of water and wind, in the soft touch of her golden hair, in the sound of her sighs... and then I felt how my body eagerly reacted to the images supplied by my overly too vivid imagination and I hated myself. Though a fierce rider and a valiant warrior, she was still a lady, my lady, and I was not about to cover her in the filth my mind so joyfully produced.

-"I cannot, my lady."

 

 

He offered me a crooked smile and I understood not why, if I had not offended him earlier, if he had enjoyed it, why he denied me another kiss. He shook his head and withdrew his hand from my face, and when it rested along his thigh, I saw both his palms clench to fists.

-"As said, my self-control is not the strongest around you, my lady."- he tilted his head and shrugged.- "I would not wish to offend you in any way."

-"Offend me?"- my eyes went wide and my voice rose in surprise. Surely he had not meant what he just said? Offend me?! And then I smiled, for I suddenly remembered just how much reverence the Lords of Gondor offered to their consorts, and how I perceived this as both unneeded and fake. The customs of my people allowed men and women much more freedom together, and I have seen the ladies of Minas Tirith blush at the mention of bed, where the Rohirric married women freely discussed their husbands' attentions in same. He was willing to forego much for me, but his breeding was too deep and thorough for him to think of his responding to me in any other way but slandering my honour.

-"You will offend me, my lord, if you don't kiss me."- I said in what I fancied to be a sultry voice.- "Now."- I added in a whisper, taking one step so that I was firmly pressed against the whole length of his body, and I could very distinctly feel what he had been so ashamed of.

 

 

How could I not kiss her? My lady, my soul, my completion, beautiful as never, offered me her lips and I complied with a sigh. She was like water to a man dying of thirst, and she filled me completely. I gathered her close, and she did not back away from me, pressing herself even more into me, and I could feel every single curve and mound of her body. I let one of my hands rest at the small of her back, upon the hollow of her spine which arched against me, and the other I brought to stroke the tousles in her golden hair as she tilted her head to one side so that I could kiss her more. I could feel and hear the blood pounding madly in my head as her lips parted themselves from my mouth and she kissed the outline of my jaw, bestowing soft and teasing cat licks upon my skin, and I offered my soul to the Valar in gratitude for the forthcomingness which they had granted to the Rohirrim.

 

 

I felt his body shiver and his skin prickle beneath my touch, and then he sighed, once again complying with my wish, as his head descended against my neck and he softly nibbled upon the bare skin I offered him. He smelled like fire and the woods, and I drowned in the heady scent as his lips traced my pulse, soft strands of his black hair falling across my eyes, and his hand tightened its grip on my back as our bodies crushed together. His mouth wandered high up to my ear, and I let out a girlish whimper as he gently suckled upon my earlobe, teasing it with his teeth. I was lost in the haven that his strong arms were, and I felt my body giving in to the bliss of his attentions as my knees went weak.

 

 

She swayed in my arms and I held her tighter, withdrawing my lips from the smooth skin of her neck to look at her, afraid that she might have been affected by the sun or the ride, and her half-closed eyes nearly burned me alive. She clung fiercely to my shoulders as she pulled me down and atop of her, and then I knew that she wanted me as badly as I wanted her, and that all the combined customs of our lands would do best averting their gazes for what we were to do denied their very core.

 

 

Why or what I did not care, except for that his weight pinning me to the ground, his raspy breath in my ear as he fumbled with the clasps of my bodice, the coldness of his shaking fingertips against my skin, all that was worth being called a whore and worse. I cared only for the man laying upon me, I wished nothing but the pleasure I took from his touch, and even these thoughts were obliterated as he claimed my mouth in a searing kiss.

His nimble fingers made the buttons snap as he unlocked them, and he moved slightly lower to explore every inch of the skin he slowly bared, and I heard him sigh against the hollow of my throat as his tongue slid lower and flickered across my collarbones.

 

 

For the life of me I can not remember how it happened, but I found my knees parting her legs and my hand upon her breast. I teased the bud of her nipple to rigid attention through the thick velvet of her dress, and I heard her moan softly as I took the green rim between my teeth, pulling it off, and sought the sweetness of her breast with my lips. Her nipple was as pale as her skin, detectable only by touch, and I pressed my finger against the twitching peak, seeing naught but the whiteness of her body.

 

 

Nothing had ever felt comparably good to the moist heat of his mouth as he kissed his way along the mound of my breast to my nipple, gently licking the hardened bud with just the tip of his tongue, then, as my fingers grasping his hair and my back arching against him urged him to go harder upon me, he closed his teeth on the tip throbbing in his mouth and I stifled a scream. His hands ventured swiftly beneath my dress, and I wriggled impatiently, raising my shoulders so that he could slide the material off my upper body. There was no way back now and, Valar help me, I did not regret it.

 

 

She raised her back eagerly and I tore the dress off her slender frame as she reached behind my back, tugging at the linen of my shirt until it freed itself from my breeches and she pulled it over my back. I inclined my head so that she could free me from the garment, and fell back against her, the sudden contact of bare skin causing us both to gasp. She embraced me, holding me close, kissing me, shifting her legs so that she could kick the skirt of the dress off, and then her legs embraced me too, and she pushed her womanhood against my groin.

I wanted to savour the moment, burn it into my memory where it would be kept safe for the rest of my life whether she chose to stay or leave me, but I knew she would not let me, and neither would the lusty part of me allow itself to be held back for too long.

As for now, I stretched my left arm to rest upon it and looked down at her. My lady. Soon to be mine in all the ways a man could have a woman, which, as I realised only too well, was only as much as a woman would let a man have her. Her blue eyes gazed up at me, deep ponds full of feelings I knew I could never understand, her pale, full lips shivered slightly as her breath came in ragged gasps, and the delicate golden sheen of hair upon her arms and thighs made her enticing form catch and bind the sunshine. The pearly white of her skin I was sure could not be compared to anything in this world, and my gaze ravished the soft, ample crescents of her breasts, the contours of her collarbones, the gentle bays of her waist and the mesmerising curves of her hips. I brought my right hand to cup her cheek and she leaned against it.

-"My lady."- I whispered and slowly moved to press myself more in between her limbs, but a sudden flash of fear in her eyes stopped me in my tracks.

I was ready to slay myself for my stupidity. I had completely forgotten that she had never lain with a man before, and that for all the courage she showed on the battlefield, she must have been very scared of the alien pain I was to cause her, and I would gladly give my life to spare her that.

-"Listen to me."- I spoke softly, as though to a child, for indeed she was an infant to the world of flesh.-"I will not hurt you."

-"I know, my lord."- she trusted me, that I could see, but the fear of a maiden ran deeper than her feelings for me, and I could not blame her, for this was a fear embedded in many generations of women before her.

-"Let me do what I deem, my lady, and I promise you..."- what could I promise her? That it would not hurt at all? I would give my best to ease her pain, but it had to hurt nevertheless. That she would enjoy my actions? Though I had been told I knew how to please a woman, I was not so full of myself as to be relieved of the uncertainty of every man and lover whether he had honoured his lady properly. She raised her eyebrows at my silence.

-"I want you."- she stated simply and my soul froze in utter bliss.- "Do what you wish."

 

 

He smiled at me, and the smile promised me more than his words could have. Aye, I wanted him, and though my insides knotted with fear, I trusted and loved him enough to give him my maidenhead to have in whichever way he pleased. He placed his lips upon mine in a gentle kiss and then the flame of his mouth descended against my skin, igniting every spot he touched. He bestowed the same considerate and thorough attention upon my breasts as he had before, his palms softly kneading the flesh, his teeth grazing my nipples, and then he slid even lower, flickering his tongue along the line that ran straight to my navel.

But then his lips diverted from their path, and he pushed himself up again, this time kissing my sides, his fingertips teasing me with their feathery touch, and my hips, his hands resting upon my hipbones, stilling my shivering, and along the outer side of my thigh, the peak of my knee, the inner side of my calf, stripping my leg off the stocking, my last garment, as he went.

His tongue slid against the sensitive inside of my foot, and I giggled uncontrollably. My brother always said I could not find my wits in most serious situations, but my lord only grinned against the delicate skin he investigated. His lips parted as he kissed each and every of my toes, tongue twirling around the small digits, softly suckling upon the tiniest one, and in my most fevered visions had I never dreamed of anything as lascivious as the sight of him devouring my feet.

The black stubble on his chin and cheeks gently scratched my inner thigh as he went up the other leg, his mouth delving as deep as the line between my limb and hip, then licking across my stomach and placing one light kiss upon my navel, his hands fluttering like moths on my skin. He raised his black head and smirked as he caught me watching him and his ministrations of my body, and I knew he understood just how much the watching itself pleasured me. His gaze and attention went back down, and my head fell back against the ground as his hot, wet tongue whirled in the hollow. And then his mouth slid lower.

'He is not going to kiss me *there*!!' I thought, horrified, but this was exactly what he did.

 

 

I could not prevent the pain my invading her body would cause, but I could try to show her the pleasure first. As I placed my lips against her nether ones, I was unable to stop a tremor of delight that shook me as I saw and felt how her womanhood wept for me. Knowing I had to proceed slow, I slid my tongue inside the folds of soft, slick skin, and I heard her give a short, high-pitched scream as I found her jewel. Gently, I closed my lips upon the hardened bud of flesh, suckling upon it, as she thrashed upon the grass and I had to hold her down. Her slim limbs flew around my neck, I could feel her feet rest upon my shoulder blades as the peaks of my arms dug deeply into the soft underside of her thighs. I opened my mouth so that my teeth would still remain upon that one spot, and thrust my tongue inside her.

 

 

I closed my eyes, and the bursting red flames the sun projected beneath my eyelids were nothing compared to the flames shooting up my body from where he drowned his mouth in the very essence of me. One arm beneath my waist to hold and protect me from the soil, the other he stretched to rest his hand upon my stomach, and I grabbed it, squeezed it with bruising force, for I needed something to hold on, one solid thing to anchor me as waves after waves of pleasure crashed against me. The velvety length pistoned in and out of me, exploring me, diving deeper and deeper with each restless thrust, and I arched my back, jerked my hips against his face as he worked me harder, and then I screamed, for I had lost my anchor in reality and the forceful tide of rapture swept me away.

 

 

I felt her smooth thighs clench and tighten around my head, and I could no longer hear her moans, but I felt her body shiver violently as she erupted into my mouth, and my senses were filled with the sweetness I had made her spill for me.

I rested my cheek against her sweated thigh and waited for her to regain her wits. She had nearly crushed my fingers, and I had to wriggle them to make sure I still had feeling in my left hand as her body went limp and she released me. How I managed not to lose the restraint I had placed upon my body is a mystery to me, it is enough to say that I was still in need for fulfilment, and my arousal twitched and burned in my breeches.

I pushed myself up to face the lady I loved, even more now as I knew how she tasted and smelled, though I had thought that to love anyone more than I had loved her before would be impossible for a mortal heart. Her breath was shallow, her eyes closed and her features changed from the composed noblewoman into the fiery lover, and I knew I loved both.

 

 

I opened my eyes to find his face hovering over mine, and I drowned in his bright eyes. He held me close and ran his hands along my skin in a slow, calming motion as I shivered against him. The warmth of his brown skin sent a poison ivy of desire deep inside my body, and I lifted my head from where it was pillowed upon his arm to kiss him.

-"My lady..."- he tried to object, but I claimed his mouth savagely, and only then did I realise that my juices still lingered in his mouth. I could not prevent a moan that arose in my chest as the salty aftertaste slid from his tongue upon mine. What he had done to me opened a new horizon before my eyes, a wholly new world for us yet to discover, but right now I wanted to feel him inside me, and I wanted him to join me in the place he had sent me to earlier.

I was very self-conscious of my every move, wishing not for my inexperience to amuse him, but when he crushed me against him and I felt his hardness press into my stomach, I knew there were truly very few things I could do that he would complain of right now. Though my hands shook I managed to unclasp the lock of his belt, and I pushed myself up to help him remove his boots and breeches. My eyes narrowed as I admired the beauty of his nakedness sprawled on the green grass before me, the long, slender yet muscled limbs, the slim waist, lean chest, the gleam of his black mane and his wide open eyes, the grey of which was not met by any colour I had ever seen. But most of all my gaze unconsciously wandered to his member, swollen and hard, the tip slightly purple, as I hesitantly extended my arm to touch it. Not what a lady would have done, but something I certainly wished to do at that very moment.

 

 

Her cool hands rested on my flesh and I knew I could not, no matter how I would try, postpone my release, if she continued the curious strokes and touches she bestowed upon me. I wanted to come inside her, to come with her, and I caught her palms which had by now grabbed me with full might, forcing them away and up to my mouth, and I kissed each soft fingertip with reverence. As she frowned, I understood that she thought I had stopped her because she did something wrong, and I smiled at her.

-"I would not wish it to happen this way, my lady. Not this way and not yet."- I pushed her over gently so that once again, she lay on her back, and I lifted myself on my elbows, moving upon her, between the legs she eagerly spread to welcome me. I heard our mounts whine a couple of paces away, excited by our passion they must have felt in the air, but I gave no heed to them as she embraced me.

 

 

Honestly, I thought I would be repulsed at the sight of a male body in its full glory, and I was rather scared that this would mar my love for him, should I prove unable to satisfy my lord and husband in bed. But when I touched him for the first time, and I saw his eyes shut close and his mouth open and his back arch at the lightest of my caresses, I knew that nothing about him could ever repulse me. My hands moved along the throbbing length of his shaft, and I explored every single spot that had him moaning, every single twist of my wrist that would cause his fingers to claw upon the dark soil beneath us, and I knew I loved every single place upon his body as much as I loved every one in his mind and soul.

He stopped me, and I swiftly understood that it was not the lack of pleasure I was giving him that had made him do it, but rather the excess of it. I parted my legs as he slid atop of me and between them, and I embraced him tightly. His mouth brushed mine, resting upon it, and he arranged my limbs higher, his hand ventured down to position himself... and I sobbed out in pain as his flesh stretched and filled me.

 

 

I had no idea how to do it best, but I figured that getting over the initial hurt as swiftly as possible seemed a good idea, and I made my lady mine in one smooth thrust, sheathing myself in her completely. I felt the barrier of her body give way beneath the shove, and she cried out against my lips, but I held her and did not move.

-"I love you."- I told her in the softest whisper I could muster, which was very hard due to the pulsating tightness that enveloped me, pushing all breath out of my lungs and all thought out of my mind.

 

 

-"I love you too."- I told him, though I still hurt, my body seared apart beneath him, but while the burning pain still throbbed in my lower stomach, I trusted he knew what he was doing. Many heartbeats passed as we just lay there, the blades of grass soft beneath my back, my lord hard inside my body, and his lips still pressed against mine, and I felt myself slowly adjust to the alien, strange feeling as the pain passed. He shifted his weight to his elbows, and, locking his gaze with mine, slid out of me, gently rocking back, thrusting carefully, and though I still felt sore, it did not hurt that badly anymore. The burning friction I felt at first was now soothed by the welcome my body offered him, and I lifted my lips to meet his as his mouth hovered tantalisingly close over mine. He delved deep into me like a hack digging into stone in search for gold, or like a hunter's claws dipping with murderous care into the flesh of his prey, searching for that one morsel that had made him kill.

But then his grey, dazzling eyes met mine, and I knew I had been utterly wrong as the hurt upon the tearing of my maidenhead put words of violence and assault into my mind; he would rather slaughter himself than hurt me. His body melted and melded with mine, and my legs went high up so that I crossed my calves at the small of his back, and he sank even deeper into me, and I could sense the crispy scent of his sweat as his hand held my hips in place and he plunged into me, and I responded to his thrusts, and we moved together in an ancient rhythm, and for the first time in my life I heard the music the spheres of Arda were said to create.

 

 

I heard her scream and I ceased my movements, although just how I managed to control the avalanche of my desire, even if only for so tiny a moment, I do not know.

-"Did I hurt you?"- not more than a breath escaped my lips, so madly raced my heart.

-"No!"- she breathed back and pulled me down, and dug her heels into my ass as she would have spurred a horse, and I shook my head at the customs of the Rohan people. But I would not have denied her anything that was in my power to give, and I rocked against her, my hipbones against the flesh of her legs, and I moved with her beneath me, around me, and I increased the velocity of my rhythm, and I buried myself deep in her.

I felt a surge of hot moisture against my thighs and abdomen, and my lady cried out my name,

and obediently I followed, releasing myself into her violently as her name, too, rolled off my lips in a strangled groan, and along with it fell a tear for I could not remember ever feeling so at peace with my place in the world as when my lady's heartbeat steadied beneath mine, beads of sweat upon her white skin merged with those on mine, as I slid out from her, watching her as her eyes regained their colour, for they were nearly blackened as she lost herself in bliss.

 

 

I heard him moan my name as he filled me with his release, a hot, forceful gush shooting into me as he came, just a heartbeat after me, and once more, as he spent every last drop of himself in me. I knew with the crystal clear certainty that is sometimes granted to the people of my lord that a new being was just conceived in my womb, a child of the madness of the ride. Our child. I did not want to weep, but tears swelled up in my eyes and trickled down my heated cheeks, the relief of the enormous tension that had gathered in me. I had forgotten, however, that beside me lay a man who would claim every smallest creature's suffering onto him if he only could.

-"What have I done?"- I looked up on him, on the horrified grey eyes and brow furrowed with worry, and I cupped his face in my palms with a smile.

-"I weep because I am happy."- I whispered, and his features, frozen by fear, now softened as he returned my smile.- "I love and am loved in return, and I am bound to you with vows stronger than those we will soon speak."- I could not word myself as beautifully and precisely as he, but as I saw his eyes cloud with sudden moisture, I knew he understood me.

-"My wife."- he tilted his head like a nervous horse as he so often did and placed a kiss upon the tip of my nose. He was still a riddle to me. But I was no longer afraid of him and the place he had taken in my heart.

-"My husband."

 

 

And so I had wed the White Lady of Rohan. She was right, for no words could alter the vows our bodies have made, and no marriage could be stronger than the one we just entered, without witnesses, just her and I, beneath the sun that shone upon the whole of Middle-earth.

I gathered her into my arms, and she rested her head on my chest, blowing at a stray leaf that had clung to her back and then fell on my collarbone. The grass was soft beneath my back, for spring had come early this year, and I gazed into the cloudless sky rimmed by the crimson of sunset.

 

 

All of a sudden, he started laughing, and I jolted up.

-"What is wrong, my lord?"

-"Nothing."- he shook his head, still chuckling.- "But I just remembered that we have not eaten."

-"Do you regret it, my lord?"- I laughed too, wriggling myself closer to him. His arm tightened around me.

-"Not in the least, my lady."- he gave me an amused look and I coloured slightly.- "But I do believe we should move. Two Kings will be ready to behead me if I don't bring you back safely, my lady."

-"Aye, my lord."- I saluted to him as if he had given me a command, and the deep tone of his laughter sent a shiver down my spine.

-"Thank you."- there was a sudden seriousness in his gaze.

-"What for, my lord?"- he raised his eyebrows with a grin and plucked something small and green from my hair.

-"For being here. For having me. And, last but nor least, for making my waiting 'til the wedding night slightly more bearable."- much to my joy, but also to my amazement, he had brought our conversation on a level I would have not expected him to ever ascend; that of carefree suggestiveness. If not horseback riding, that at least I was sure I could beat him in. I looked at him with a straight face.

 

 

-"Well, my lord, you have made *my* waiting 'til the wedding night definitely less bearable than before. I did not know what I was waiting for,"- she leaned in to whisper in my ear.- "now I know and I am going to have a very hard time. Three weeks, is it?"- and as I snorted with suppressed laughter, she licked the outline of my ear. I grabbed her and brought her face to mine.

-"Three weeks indeed, my lady."- I murmured against her mouth.- "Think we'll make it?"

-"Think we have a choice?"- she deadpanned and I chuckled before kissing her.

 

 

He helped me arrange my dress so that as long as I didn't have to take off the cloak, it looked fine, the tearings he had made in the material hidden beneath the folds I tightly wrapped around myself. We mounted and rode back along the Anduin, painted scarlet by the setting sun, and he averted his gaze from the river with a frown. I wondered whether he thought of the two sieges of Osgiliath, when he must have seen that water run truly bloody. I reached out and grasped his hand, interlacing my fingers with his for as long as we did not reach the bridge, and he turned to me with a smile, though his eyes were still haunted with memories. But the shadow I felt his soul tarnished with when we had first met now only touched him for a heartbeat, and he squeezed my hand softly before releasing it, and the bright ponds twinkled back at me as we crossed the bridge.

 

 

Had my King asked for me that particular evening, he would've been forced to deprive me of my office. Truly, a stoned and half-witted hobbit would have done a better job out of being a Steward than me back then. We sneaked out of the stables and I escorted my lady to her chambers, where she assured me in a wicked whisper that she had been walking the ramparts the whole day long. Which left me having inspected the damages in Ithilien with one of my Rangers, probably, and I was grateful to the Valar that my King did not know my men well enough to ask me which Ranger exactly accompanied me.

But upon returning to my own rooms, my lips still burning with the fierce kiss she took leave of me with, I learned that Aragorn Elessar had indeed mentioned me, only saying that he shall not have need of me tonight. I owed the Valar big time that day.

 

 

I asked one of the women who cleaned my chambers to set up a bath for me, and I stepped into the steaming water eagerly. I had dismissed the girl, telling her I wished to be alone, for I was pretty sure I still had a souvenir of some grass and leaves upon my back. The hot liquid whirled between my thighs as I sat down, and I laid back in the copper tub, smiling to the moth that had rested on the ceiling. The scent of herbs unknown to me enveloped me as the water caressed my flesh, and my senses tingled, for now I was much more sensitive to touch than I had ever been before. The soreness I felt when I rode so soon after my lord and I had made love now disappeared beneath the warmth of my bath, and my hand slid slowly across my wet skin, repeating my lord's actions of earlier this day, and I had to bit my lip as I recalled just how he had pleasured me. Three weeks... I would last three weeks, but I would make him pay for that wait dearly.

 

 

The night was peaceful as I had never seen it. Or maybe it was that I felt peaceful as never, and the stars winked knowingly down at me, and I smiled at them in return. The cool breeze ruffled my hair as I sat cross-legged upon the ramparts of the sixth circle, the Tower of Ecthelion behind me and the White City, now drowned in quiet slumber, before me.

I had frequented this place so often that I knew every single creak in the grey stone I sat upon, and my hands on which I leaned back instinctively found just the right hollows to rest. This was where I would tell my brother of my dreams, and where he would always listen, admitting to his lack of understanding and yet offering me comfort and support throughout my worst torments. This was where I had told him of Imladris and Isildur's Bane for the first time, too, and this was where he told me he had had the very same vision that had robbed me of my sleep. We had spent countless moments here, he with his legs stretched before him and I with mine pulled up beneath my chin. We had drank and eaten here, and these very stones were the only witnesses to our discussions of women, politics and our father.

I had not come here without a purpose. This was where my brother's presence still seemed to linger though it had been many months since I had learned of his death. I came here when my lady first rejected me, and I came here as she agreed to have me. I knew more than well how childish it was, but somehow I felt that by sitting here I could reach my brother through time and space I knew I was not able to comprehend to where I was sure he waited for me to join him in Mandos' halls. There was a time when I would stand up from the place I sat upon and walk to the edge of the battlements, and many times did I gaze on the street below, knowing that only one small step separated me from him. But I did not take it and I no longer wished to. I had had his love for the short time that was given us and I knew that his love for me stayed even though he himself departed, and I smiled again. He was here, with me, and I felt his soul rejoice along with mine at the happiness I had found.

 

 

I awoke in my bed, and my arms were cold for the empty space next to me and the lack of his warm body to embrace and hold me tight. But the sun greeted me with a smile and I smiled back, for a new day had risen and I was strong with the knowledge that he walked and breathed so near to me, and that soon I would awaken only with him by my side.

My peace with the world did not, however, last long. Soon I was besieged by the ladies of Gondor and some of Rohan too, who had come to aid me in the preparation for my wedding. There were dozens of customs to be respected, and the ceremonies of the Rohirrim and Gondorrim were too different for my lord and me to be able to respect both. I felt caught and confined by their endless chatter, and the beauty of the day before only added to my feeling of being imprisoned amidst strangers.

I did indeed take solace in my memories of the moments I had spent with my love in Ithilien, letting my mind wander and shut out the clamour around me. I silently prayed for some distraction, for I was sure that where the ladies of Gondor would never even think of having such a conversation with me, the customs of my people made a bride everyone's daughter and apple of the eye for the time she was betrothed; and I was not sure if, should the Rohirrim women raise the subject of my wedding night, I would be able to restrain myself from laughing in their faces. My saving came in the form of my lord.

There was a knock on the door and one of the ladies rushed to answer it. A dazzling smile came into my chambers upon the face of my love, and I could feel the temperature rise in and around me the moment he crossed the threshold.

-"My lord Prince."- I heard the rustling of the ladies' dresses as he entered and they bowed to him. As his betrothed and thus equal to him in rank, I acknowledged him with only a nod and waited for him to come and greet me where I stood. Even if I would have given the very blood that gave me my breath just to be able to run up to him and drown in his arms. I could see him tilt his head and grin at me, and in his eyes I saw that he, too, would have been more than happy to take me into his embrace. For not the first time lately, I silently cursed that he and I were not peasants free to do our liking. Then again, we very much *did* our liking lately.

 

 

She looked like a pale flower near to full blossom, but she did not look trampled by the countless greyish figures encircling her. If anything, their presence only added to her beauty, and she rose above them, my White Lady.

I knew what had been happening, or rather I had guessed it, and one did not need foresight to see it. It was a granted token that we would be wed in Minas Tirith, though there were more than enough who despised that, Eomer King not the least. But still, my lady and I had to obey to the laws and customs of both our homelands, and I could sense her to resent if not me, then at least the fact that we were born to two different countries. I gave her a smile, lost in thought, and for a heartbeat, I saw not the pale and graceful lady all in sky-blue and silver, but the one she had been the day before, with her hair spread against the green grass and her skin bared for my eyes and touch. I smiled at the remembrance. We had felt so good upon the soft soil of Ithilien, not only because of what we had done, but mostly because we had been alone, freed from the constraints of both Gondorian and Rohirric demands, we had been... at home.

 

 

I saw a strange gleam in his eyes as he crossed the room to stand by my side and took the hand I offered him.

-"My lady."- he brought my hand to his lips in greeting, but did not release it after the customary kiss. I smiled at him.

-"My lord."

-"I have come to dismiss the ladies."- his grey gaze shifted upon the noblewomen encircling me and I raised my eyebrows at him in silent question as he looked back at me.

-"But, my lord, the wedding must be planned..."- one of them protested shyly, but he did not grace her with his attention.

-"The wedding does not need to be planned."- a soft, gentle smile curved his lips and his eyes did not leave mine.- "We shall not marry either in Gondor or in Rohan."- I heard gasps come from the ladies at this revelation, and my own face must have been nothing short of astounded.- "My lady and I will be wed in Ithilien. Our common home."- I heard naught of the comments exchanged by the women as they left, for I was lost in the bright grey safety of his eyes and wished not to return.

-"Our home."- I whispered with a smile and I knew that the previous day I had truly ridden home.


End file.
